Sunday, August 17, 2008
Baiting the Bear
Last week, Poland's pugnacious president Lech Kaczynski organized a trip to Tbilisi, Georgia together with four other heads of state from former Soviet Bloc countries -- Ukraine, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia. He's been outspokenly supportive of Georgian President Mikhal Saakashvili, to the dismay of some within the Polish government who would like to see Poland work within the EU and of many Poles who see flying to a war zone as unnecessarily provocative.
But Poland's history really informs its position here -- Poles have ample reason not to trust the Russians, reasons dating back four centuries or more that are only reinforced by the lessons of the 20th century. Poland has made a point of helping dissidents all over the former Soviet Union and supporting projects that undermine Russian authority, some of which I've written about in the past.
I wrote about the debate in Poland this week for Spiegel, and hours later the Poles signed a missile-defense pact with the United States, a good indication that they're legitimately worried about Russia's future intentions in the neighborhood.
But Poland's history really informs its position here -- Poles have ample reason not to trust the Russians, reasons dating back four centuries or more that are only reinforced by the lessons of the 20th century. Poland has made a point of helping dissidents all over the former Soviet Union and supporting projects that undermine Russian authority, some of which I've written about in the past.
I wrote about the debate in Poland this week for Spiegel, and hours later the Poles signed a missile-defense pact with the United States, a good indication that they're legitimately worried about Russia's future intentions in the neighborhood.
Labels: georgia, kaczynski, poland, saakashvili, spiegel
